Travel Restrictions for Covid-19

.Updated 5 March 2021

Changes are happening more quickly now and therefore to make sure that you have the correction information, we are advising anyone wanting to know the very latest travel news to visit DESTINATION GREECE HEALTH FIRST as this site has the most up-to-date travel information.

The Destination Greece site covers everything you need to know if you are travelling by air, road, train or boat. It highlights what safety measures are in place and continue to be implemented. It clearly sets out what you can and can't do while on holiday and most importantly what you need to do if you get sick with the virus once you're in the country. It's a really reassuring to know that Greece will look after its visitors as well as it has its residents.

Updated: 19 February 2021

The requirements to travel into Greece and onwards to Spetses Island during the Covid crisis are changing so quickly that it can be very confusing. We have included this page so that visitors and island residents can see exactly what requirements are in force currently.

However, due to constant quick changes that we might not be able to keep up with, travellers are strongly advised to either contact their Embassy and/or visit the official websites of the Official Authorities in every country they would like to travel from/to.

Current Restrictions for DOMESTIC Travel have been extended to the 6am on Sunday 28th February 2021.

Current Restrictions for INTERNATIONAL Travel have been extended to Monday, February 22 at midnight.

Currently the only permitted reason for travel within the Greece or across its borders is for emergency & essential reasons only. Holiday or leisure travel is not permitted. The following applies whether travel into Greece is by plane, car or boat.

The current Greek curfew which also applies to Spetses starts at 21:00 and finishes at 05:00, so no one is allowed out during night hours unless for emergency reasons with permission. This is 18.00 and finishes at 07.00 at weekends.

Domestic travel: Only essential trips allowed

• The non-essential travel restriction for domestic flights (travel between prefectures) in Greece has been extended by one week, until 6am on Sunday, 28 February.
• The aviation directive (NOTAM) concerns domestic scheduled, commercial and general/business flights and foresees that only essential travel is allowed for health and business reasons, family reunification, and returning to permanent residence.
• Exempt from the restrictions are emergency flights, Hellenic national healthcare system flights, state flights, sanitary flights, humanitarian flights, military flights, cargo flights, fire fighting flights, frontex flights, technical landing flights (where passengers do not disembark) and ferry flights (return of with crew without passengers).

International Travel

The HCAA’s update for its Covid-19 aviation directives (NOTAMS) extends travel rules and restrictions for all international flights, which includes the 7-day quarantine measure for all arrivals from abroad.

The following travel restrictions will remain in place until Monday, February 22 at midnight:

PLF remains mandatory

• The submission of the Passenger Locator Form (PLF) by all passengers of international flights to Greece remains mandatory.The rule also applies to Greek citizens and permanent residents of Greece who travel abroad on flights (outbound travel). They are required to fill out the PLF form before their departure from Greece and present it at border checkpoints.

Mandatory negative Covid-19 test result

• ALL travellers from abroad must submit a negative Covid-19 test result (PCR) performed up to 72 hours before arrival in Greece and may also be requested to take a rapid Covid-19 test upon entry (depending on the data provided on the PLF forms). If a passenger is selected for a rapid test and is positive for the coronavirus then he/she must quarantine for a total of 14 days.

7-day quarantine for all arrivals

• ALL passengers entering Greece from any foreign country, including European Union member states, must self-isolate either at their home (for permanent residents) or at the place of temporary residence declared on the PLF, for 7 days. If they are to stay in Greece for a shorter period, the temporary restriction is valid for that period of time, ie until their departure.

UK arrivals

• ALL arrivals from the UK must take a PCR test after their seventh day of quarantine in the Greece. If the test is positive the quarantine will be in force for 14 days. If the test is negative the quarantine ends.

Travel ban for non-EU residents

• The temporary ban on entry into Greece from outside the EU has also been updated. Citizens from the following 10 countries are excluded from the ban: UK, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, Rwanda, South Korea, Thailand, United Arab Emirates, Russian Federation and Israel.

It is noted that Japan has been removed from the list of countries exempt from the restriction.

Flights from Turkey remain banned

• The HCAA has extended the travel ban for flights from Turkey to Greece. Flights between Greece – Turkey remain suspended.

Arrivals from Russia

• Only 500 permanent residents of Russia per week are allowed to enter Greece on flights landing (only) at the airports of Athens, Thessaloniki and Heraklion.

Upon arrival in Greece

• All incoming passengers from outside Greece are checked and subject to random COVID-19 test by the Hellenic Civil protection personnel, in predefined areas at the arrivals of each airport, according to their QR Code. If the COVID-19 tests are positive, the Hellenic Government Health Services will inform the passengers and instruct them to follow a supervised 14 days quarantine.
• Following the random checks, passengers will be free to travel to their final destination or residence. 
• International to domestic connecting passengers will be randomly checked to COVID-19 test (as per QR code) and then will proceed to Security Control and their departing gate. 
• International to international transfer passengers will not go through COVID-19 test, nor they need to fill in the PLF and will proceed directly to Security Control and on to their departing gate. 
• Administrative fines (Hellenic Government) apply to passengers not holding the electronic form - QR code.
• Passengers are requested to remain in a temporary address/hotel, until the COVID-19 test results are published.
• As a matter of urgency for the containment of the COVID-19 spread, the Greek government has banned night-time traffic and people movements, from 21:00 and until 05:00. Especially for the “red” areas, Attica and Thessaloniki included, during the weekend, the traffic ban starts at 18:00. Arriving and departing passengers on flights scheduled within the night ban, will be exempted. In case of a police check, passengers must provide their ticket or other evidence regarding their flight time schedule.